Working With A Remote Team? Why Now Is More Important Than Ever To Build A Company Culture

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What a Crazy Few Weeks

In light of everything going on with COVID-19 and its effects on business, people have asked us - are we still going to be marketing? Are we still “doing business as usual” for our clients? 

We’re not the only ones being asked that. Businesses around the world are affected by closures, buyers rethinking their spending and priorities, suppliers being slowed down, a huge market drop, and consumers wondering what will happen.

There is a feeling of uncertainty and it affects everyone in some way. How is it affecting your team?

Even though for the moment, the situation seems indefinite, there is a silver lining here. 

Because out of uncertainty comes opportunity. Those who adapt, those who stay optimistic, and those who look for opportunities are those who survive. 

How We’re Rallying Around Our Mission To Stay Focused

In this week’s #MarketingMinute, I want to share with you an internal meeting that LinkedSelling co-founder and President, Ben Kniffen held with our team recently. Now, this was a meeting that was already planned, (pre-virus) as we were coming out of a strong product launch for 2020 for our SaaS product. 

The purpose was to make sure we were all on the same page, with the same focus and working towards the same goals. It ended up being ever-more relevant with everything that’s going on, most of our team working at home, and the general feeling of unrest in society with the Coronavirus and its effects.

I want to share why we did this, some of the reception that it got within the company, and why it’s so important to build team culture, create a cohesive unit, and create a strong sense of purpose within the company - and how you can do the same.

It starts and ends with one idea that Helen Keller captures perfectly,

“Alone, we can do so little; together we can do so much.”

Remember this: even though you or a lot of your team may be working alone right now, no one in your organization should feel alone. 

Every two weeks we hold a “company-wide” meeting to go over promotions, news, events, and anything else relevant. This particular meeting though had a special purpose: to emphasize our rebranded mantra, “Take the Lead” and what that means for each of us. 

Ben did a fantastic job of sharing our goals (something we continually discuss as a company) and how we’re doing on that journey. He also talked about how each of us can “Take the Lead.”

This is a phrase we’ve been using to describe not only how we literally “take the lead” in our industry, or how we help our clients take the leads in their industries, but how we also provide the right leads and quality sales appointments for our clients. It describes our sole purpose in helping businesses fill their pipelines with qualified sales opportunities.

But to us - it goes even deeper.

We discussed how we take the lead as a company by working together to see growth and that each team and each team player can make a difference in achieving that.

We discussed how we help our clients “take the lead” by providing excellent customer service, and yes… actually delivering quality leads and sales appointments.

We talked about how each of us can “Take the Lead” in the details of our day to day; how each and everything we do in our personal and professional lives mirrors the results we see and how effective we’ll be at taking the lead. 

Having this open discussion only further cemented our support for each player on our team and our support for our clients. Now that most of the team is at home, it’s that much more relevant.

Team Leadership and Culture Starts with A Cohesive Purpose

This discussion proved to be very successful, judging based on the feedback we got from our team.

Afterward, one of our team players wrote their thoughts on Slack:

It made even more of a difference when later that same week schools and businesses started closing and more of our team started working remotely as Ben announced that the LinkedSelling offices were being closed for the time being. 

Strong Communication is the Only Way to Build A Team Culture

This is why we continually emphasize our core values; they bring us together to help strengthen our common purpose as a company and they motivate each of us to continue giving our best. 

So when the world stops, our business does not. 

We recently sent out our printed core values to each of our team players to use as a guideline and rally behind. 

So when the world stops, our business does not. 

Core Values: What We Believe In

Here are our core values here at LinkedSelling (and our other brands Connect 365, Emphatic, and Elite Digital Group:

No matter the situation we have defined elements that make up our team and philosophy to help us get through tough times. 

Three Reasons To Communicate A Cohesive Purpose In Your Team

1. Cultivate Greater Company Buy-in and A Sense of Team Belonging

Especially during times like these when your team is working in a different environment, possibly with kids at home and other distractions, they might need to learn new skills, develop a new routine and maintain a greater sense of focus. 

Sharing your company's purpose and how each team player has a part in that, along with reinforcing strong communication with remote tools, will support your employees during these changes and beyond. 

With a renewed sense of purpose, it makes it easier to find the motivation and positivity to continue as a team and give your all. In our company meeting just last week, Ben shared this...

“Us as a group, we need to stick together and take the lead. There are times when it’s a struggle, and I draw on other team members, when they share energy, I know I can push through it. Everyone needs to keep pushing and keep taking the lead.”

2. Build More Trust in Your Industry

Conveying that purpose is important not just for your internal team but also for your clients and your prospects. 

An article I came across recently talked in-depth about the effects surveys have shown that purpose has for building trust in the industry. 

From Top Rank Marketing blog, both B2B and B2C buyers “are placing more importance than ever on brand purpose and the trust that successful businesses cultivate.”

In fact, a recent Association of National Advertisers (ANA) survey showed that :

• 82% of B2B executives see companies with purpose having more success than those without.
• 90% are more likely to try a product from companies that takes a stand on societal and public matters
• 80% are willing to pay more for products
• 43% prefer a company to take a stand on an issue even if it does not align with their own point of view

The article continues, “Brand purpose and trust are both simultaneously in play for B2B marketers during this time of COVID-19 changes.” These are sensitive times and it’s worth approaching your marketing with more understanding, more care, and more emphasis on connection.

What should you be doing to build trust with your best prospects right now? 

Click here to get full access to a demo our entire Outbound Sales Development Blueprint on the multi-channel approach that our clients use to get qualified sales appointments every single month. 

3. Reflect, Regroup & Refocus With a New Perspective

Our team mantra, our core values, and frequent opportunity to share them act not only as guidelines, but they also provide an opportunity for each of us on the LinkedSelling team, and for the clients and people we work with to see things with a new perspective. 

It’s easy to get bogged down by daily tasks, unending negative news, and to feel alone during this time of social distancing. We can’t pretend that things aren’t different, but we can adapt, grow, give our best, give a shit about our clients, our work, and the people around us, and stay linked together.

Right now, all of us are forced to see things from a new perspective whether we like it or not. The landscape has changed, many are working at home when they didn’t before, businesses are embracing online meetings, and the general dialogue is focused on the uncertainty. 

All of this provides a time to focus on what’s really important and on finding that opportunity amidst the uncertainty. Now is a time to find new energy with a new perspective and come together. 

The Harvard Business Review has taken a look at the role of reassurance and being proactive with communications, in “Communicating Through the Coronavirus Crisis.” Here are my top two takeaways:

1. No one has all the answers, just be compassionate and transparent. “In fast-moving and uncertain situations, many leaders face questions they may not even have answers to. Approach the situation with empathy. Put yourself in your constituents’ shoes to understand their anxiety. You will sometimes get it right, and you will often get it wrong, but it is still better to be as transparent as you can.”
2. Share your voice. “Studies have shown that leaders, in particular, have a special role in reducing employee anxiety. In my study of crisis communication after 9/11, many employees described how important it was to hear the voice of the leader, whether live or through email, phone messages, or social media.”

The stark, bottom line is this: However you think it will affect your business, you’re probably right. 

You can use this as a time to come together and be creative, or you can succumb to the uncertainty and the anxiety. Personally, I’ll go with the first choice. I hope this post might provide some inspiration and motivation to take charge of your focus, stay positive, and remember that even if you’re working remotely, you’re not alone.

Your Turn

What to learn more? 

Click here to get full access to a demo our entire Outbound Sales Development Blueprint on the multi-channel approach that our clients use to get qualified sales appointments every single month.  

This is how we are going to TAKE THE LEAD, especially in this new landscape.

Want to contribute? 

Answer this focus question in the comments: What core values do you or your team share that serves as guidelines and inspiration? 

Want to motivate others? 

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